Lathan Frech pleads guilty to lesser charge

Former jail employee to be sentenced March 15

By Erik Martin - emartin@dailyadvocate.com

Frech

GREENVILLE — A New Madison man accused of rape pleaded guilty to a lesser charge of assault Tuesday in Darke County Common Pleas Court.

Lathan T. Frech, 20, represented by defense attorney Jose Lopez, agreed to plead guilty to a first-degree misdemeanor charge of assault following discussions between the defense and the state. Frech previously had been charged with a first-degree felony count of rape, which carries a maximum sentence of 11 years in prison and a $20,000 fine.

By pleading guilty to the lesser charge of assault, Frech waived his right to a jury trial and faces a maximum penalty of 180 days in jail and a fine of $1,000 in addition to continued community control.

Frech originally was indicted for an alleged incident involving a female subject which took place June 5, 2018, when Frech was 19 years old. At the time of the incident, he was employed as a corrections officer at the Darke County Jail, but his employment there was terminated following the incident. Frech has been free on his own recognizance since July.

Visiting Judge Scott T. Gusweiler of the Brown County Common Pleas Court presided over the hearing with Miami County Prosecuting Attorney Ryan Spitzer speaking for the state. The mother of the victim was present in the courtroom during the proceedings.

Spitzer asked the court to keep in place an order for no contact with the victim in the case, which was continued by Judge Gusweiler.